Which of these statements would be most appropriate for a nurse to state when assessing an adult patient for growth and developmental delays?

Question

a. "How many times per week do you exercise?"
b. "Are you able to stand on one foot for 5 seconds?"
c. "Would you please describe your usual activities during the day?"
d. "How many hours a day do you spend watching television or sitting in front of a computer?"

Answer 1

C
Understanding normal growth and development helps nurses predict, prevent, and detect deviations from patients' own expected patterns. The nurse can then compare expected patterns of activity based on age with the patient's stated activity patterns to determine deviations from the patient's own expected patterns. Asking the patient to describe his/her usual daily activities will provide the nurse with useful information about the patient's own expected patterns. How many hours are spent watching television or in front of a computer and how many times the patient exercises in a week are closed-ended questions. These questions would not provide the nurse with as much information about the patient's expected patterns when his/her stated patterns are compared with expected patterns for the patient's age group to detect delays.